Why does the god of the Bible consider handicapped people...

I saw it and just like the last time Husker posted a piece comparing Old Testament discipline to that of a parent and child, it made me want to barf.

see here.

http://www.able2know.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=1519601#1519601

and my reply to you about it here:

http://www.able2know.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=1519855#1519855

If God is so disgusted by people who are not perfect, why did he inflict those imperfections on them in the first place?

Re the Leviticus passage, the priests (and their households) ate the animals that were sacrificed to God. A farmer who was told to bring in some of his livestock to be sacrificed would be inclined to cull his herds by picking out the worst specimens. But the priests did not want to eat old, sick or injured animals, they wanted the best. So they announced that God would only accept unblemished animals, and to lend credence to this story they said that God would not allow men with defects to approach his altar and defile it either.

Yes, Jesus is said to have healed some people with defects, but he also told them "your sins are forgiven," which implied that anyone afflicted with a disability was being punished for being sinful. People with disabilities suffer doubly thanks to this Biblical superstition.

Someone mentioned that people used to hide away relatives who were handicapped. The Bible's assertion that people with defects could offend God and defile a sanctuary by their mere presence undoubtedly delayed their acceptance by society. Thankfully the Bible has finally lost its stranglehold on the minds of enough people that humanity can overturn some of its cruelest dictates.

Just in the interest of literal accuracy, he was struck blind temporarily. The text says he wouldn't see the sun "for a time".

You'll have to dig up some other illustration of why God sux.

Terry, why do you think it was God that inflicted those things?

I really should stay out of this thread since it was started with a straw man; but it is so much fun:

The imperfections of body, mind, and character that we suffer are a consequence of the sins of Adam and Eve.

The reason priests and sacrifices had to be free of (noticeable) defects was because the law was given to point the way to Christ, who acted both as a priest and a sacrifice when he offered himself up in behalf of mankind. Jesus, being truly perfect, represented the only sacrifice which could atone for the sin of the perfect man, Adam.

The healings and resurrections Jesus performed while on earth give proof of his intentions and his ability to bring about the perfect conditions for all mankind that we would have if Adam and Eve had not sinned.

In the end, the earth will be just as God intended it - filled with perfect humans who have the prospect of everlasting life.

If you think about it carefully you'll find that many of the rules of the Old Testament, while they seem odd today in light of our medical advances, protected people from disease and illness.

"...he offered himself up in behalf of mankind." who was he sacrificed to? God? What for? Does god need a sacrifice to atone for anything? The bible god surely does have a small mind if he demands a sacrifice.

Your post stems from a complete misunderstanding of the bible. I've never asked you to agree with this; but this is what it says:
Adam was a perfect man and sinned; Therefore he:
Lost his perfection.
Lost his right to everlasting life.
Was doomed to pass these deficiencies to his descendants.

So we have war and crime and sickness and death.

Now you may think it would have been best if God had just zapped Adam and Eve (and Satan) right then and there so He could start over. He certainly had a right to do so. But then you and I would not have been born.

So God allowed the human race to continue and provided another perfect human to die in the place of Adam. Jesus agreed to come to earth and provide this sacrifice willingly, not only to save us, but also to show that it was possible for a human to completely obey all laws even in the face of opposition from as powerful an adversary as Satan.

As to why it has taken what seems to us to be an interminable time for this scenario to take place, remember that, to God, 'one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years is as one day'.

Neo,

Could you refer to sources that describe the state of man before the fall?
I know you will probably refer me to scripture; but that's fine.

Specifically, what is 'perfection' for man? What does it look like, what did he have before becoming 'imperfect' and what are considered 'imperfections'?

Honestly want to know: not looking to argue right now

Deuteronomy 32:4 refers to God:
"The Rock, perfect is his activity,
For all his ways are justice.
A God of faithfulness, with whom there is no injustice;
Righteous and upright is he."

Jesus was referred to as having lived a perfect life: Hebrews 10:28 reads: "for the Law appoints men high priests having weakness, but the word of the sworn oath that came after the Law appoints a Son, who is perfected forever."

When we read of his dealings with the religious leaders, we are convinced of his sharp mind. But nowhere in the scripture do we read of Jesus having any distinguishing physical features. And, he was mortal.

So it would seem that perfection for humanity, as manifested in an adult, would be very much like the ordinary healthy humans we have walking around the earth today. Of course, they would not suffer from old age, sickness or death. Adam and Eve had such a life before them.

Remember that God's name means "He who causes to become". If God's purpose was for humans to live forever on earth, then that purpose will be fulfilled.

(If you believe the bible, that is)

Thanks Neo.

So, Jesus would not be considered 'perfect' because he is mortal?

Did I say that? Sorry if it seemed so.